Gas Prices Are Falling

In the past two months the price of gas has dropped over $1.00 per gallon.  At this moment the average prices of a gallon of regular unleaded is around $2.80 although prices vary from state to state.  However, it doesn't need to stop there but appears it might.  OPEC has recently made the decision to cut production which will increase the price of oil due to the wonderful economics of supply verses demand.  This has not affected the markets as the cost of oil is and in retrospect the cost of gas is continuing to drop.  The reason for this is mostly due to the current economic situation with the markets reacting to a possible recession which appears to be on the horizon at the moment.  You as the reader are probably thinking "we are in a recession now".  This brings me to my next topic I would like to discuss.

Everyone is interested in saving money.  The price of gas at your favorite corner station and convenience store may not be the cheapest in the neighborhood.  I've seen prices differ in my own neighborhood by 20 cents or more.  Thanks to the Internet there are many websites one can check to see what gas prices are and even report them if they have changed.  The following links are a small collection of these websites.  I'm sure there are many more and welcome any feedback to let me know what website you like to use.  The list below is by no means an endorsement of any kind.

Gasbuddy, Mapquest, GasPriceWatch, and this Google Search.

A Bullet Was Dodged

Hurricane Gustov hit the Gulf Coast of the Untied States this past week leaving much destruction in its wake. However, unlike Gustov's sister, Katrina, from three years ago, Gustov was not as strong. It appears the lessons learned in the wake of Katrina were successfully applied and executed to prevent a similar disaster this go around.

As a result of Gustov many oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico were shut down and evacuated. Fortunatly, peliminary reports show damange to the oil rigs was not as bad as it could have been which has continue to drive down the cost of oil and as a result the cost of gas is going down. While this is good news, there is still much to be done on the political front.

This week I will be writing a letter to Speaker Peloci and Senate Majority Leader Reed expressing my disappointment for theirl lack of bipartisanship on this issue. As usual I will post a response, if I get one, from these Democratic leaders.

Another Response

I don't normally do two posts in the same day but I feel this response to my letter from Senator Hatch (R-UT) should be posted right away.

August 11, 2008

Dear (my name),

Thank you for your recent correspondence urging Congress to act immediately to lower energy costs for all Americans.  I appreciate your constructive suggestions, and share your concerns.

At the end of 2006, when my party controlled Congress, the average retail price of regular unleaded gasoline according to the Energy Information Administration was $2.59.  In June of this year, the average price of regular unleaded gasoline hit an average of $4.06.  The majority part, under Democratic control, has done absolutely nothing to address the rising cost of energy.

We have proposed increasing the supply off our coasts, extending the expiring energy tax incentives, and reducing our dependence on foreign oil by providing alternative energy resources.  The Majority refuses to provide any solid bipartisan solutions.

The reality is that the government does not produce one drop of oil.  It does not drill one exploration well, does not refine even one gallon of gasoline, and doesn't build one foot of pipeline.  But somehow my colleagues think that every answer to dropping the gas prices is more government.  More government moratoria on drilling, more taxes on energy companies, more regulations of the commodity markets.

Prior to recessing for the August state work period, the Majority leader brought a bill to the Senate floor to curtail oil price speculation.  While this was a start, we tried to amend this bill to provide real solutions ranging from expanding offshore drilling to boosting oil shale production.  We were prevented from offering these various amendments, which was an opportunity to increase energy supply.

Across the Capitol, the House of Representatives refused to even bring up legislation involving offshore drilling.  I agree with my House colleagues that this is simply unacceptable.

When we return from our August recess, it is my sincere hope that House and Senate leadership will allow us to address the energy crisis with real and substantive solutions.  Your insight is very important to me and I hope you will continue to share your solutions to this very real problem.

Sincerely,

Orrin G. Hatch

United States Senator

Oil continues to drop

Since my last post much has happened on the energy front.  Oil prices have continued to drop as reported by CNN, Fox News, and other news outlets.  Some of the articles written include one through the Deseret Morning News entitled "Oil prices dip again on signs of waning demand".  House Speaker Nancy Paloci said on CNN's Larry King Live she would open up a vote on off shore drilling provided the vote was on a larger energy package.  In the same interview she has stated she would like to release oil from the National Oil Reserve in an effort to reduce gas prices.  Speaker Paloci has also been quoted stating Oil companies should be using their multi-billion dollar profits to invest in renewal energy and not continue to ask for tax breaks to pump oil when they are making so much money.

I may not agree with Speaker Paloci on a lot of things she has done but I do agree with .  However, we need to have Congress put tax breaks in place which will encourage energy companies to make as much of an investment into renewable energy as they initially did many years ago into pumping and refining oil.  Please take the time to write your elected officials to encourage them to make these strides.

On another front related to this energy crisis is that of mass transportation.  An example of this is what the Utah Transit Authority is doing to help bring mass transportation options to more people in the Salt Lake Area.  Their current and most ambitious project in this arena is called "Frontlines 2015".  This project, funded with a recent increase in sales tax, will build 70 miles of rail in seven years or less.  Ground has been broken for the "Mid Jordan" line, the "West Valley" line, the "Airport" line, and "FrontRunner South".  Another line called the "Draper Extension" will be started as soon as the opponents are done delaying the project in the courts.  These projects will get more people on mass transit than ever before in the Salt Lake City area.  Hopefully these projects will be completed faster than 2015.

As of late, the drop in oil and gas prices has not been in the news as much.  The topic that has been in the news more is the increase in inflation and cost of living.  The Deseret Morning News reported yesterday the cost of living in Utah is double the national average.  This increase is directly related to the cost incurred in the transportation of goods which is directly related to the cost of energy, specifically oil.  The Deseret Morning News is not the only news organization to report such an increase.  FoxBusiness has this report and CNN has this report.  Something needs to happen and it needs to happen on a National level.  Please write to your elected officials and tell them how you feel and what you feel ought to happen.

Oil Dropping Again

The cost of a barrel of oil seems to be heading South but the question is how much longer will it continue to do so.  CNN is reporting the cost of oil has fallen below the $120 mark for September delivery.

In the mean time, some GOP house representatives, including Rob Bishop who represents the district I reside in, are protesting the do nothing Democratic leadership during the five week August "recess".  The Deseret Morning News is reporting many GOP representatives taking some time to protest during their break despite the lights and the CSPAN cameras and microphones turned off.  Take a moment to read the article and the comments left by other readers.  They are funny. 

Causality

According to Dictionary.com Causality is the "relation of cause and effect".  What does this have to do with the expensive oil?  Everything.  CNN Money has just published an article that addresses the issue of expensive oil and how the economy has been affected by it.  With the rise in energy costs, Americans have cut back on their spending.  As a result of those cutbacks, companies like General Motors and others have posted major quarterly losses as of late.  As a result of these losses, companies are cutting back which means jobs will be lost.  Americans are also driving less.  The number of miles traveled dropped 4% between May 2007 and May 2008.  This is the third sharpest decline since since this type of record keeping started during the World War II years.  We need to stop the bleeding and find a happy medium so that energy costs do not break the bank and send the economy into a recession.

Please take a moment and review my original post and write to your elected officials.

Cost of oil on the way down?

There are many reports today regarding the cost of oil.  CNN and a local newspaper, the Deseret News are reporting (Click here for the CNN version and here for the Deseret News version) a barrel of oil to be below the $120 mark for the first time in months.  This is welcome news especially since a tropical storm by the name of Edouard has been threatening the oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico.  Apparently this threat isn't as much of a concern as it once was.  Another item that is having an effect on the price of oil is consumer spending.  Consumers are trying to make ends meet and are not spending as much for goods as they once were.  Unfortunately, gas prices are still very high and are not coming down as quickly as oil is.  I personally believe the days of $2.00 gasoline are long gone and doubt the cost of gas will go below $3.00 anytime soon if at all.

A Response...

The first of many responses to the letters I wrote to my congressmen arrived in the mail today.  This one is from Senator Bennett dated July 28, 2008 and reads as follows:

Dear (my name),

Thank you for your letter regarding domestic production of energy resources.  I appreciate hearing from you and welcome the opportunity to respond.

I share your concern regarding our nation's need to develop domestic resources of energy.  It makes sense to engage in more domestic production given the instability of foreign energy sources.  Accordingly, I support developing a comprehensive national energy policy that increases our independence from foreign oil by allowing the safe and environmentally responsible development of domestic energy resources.

I strongly believe that to meet our country's energy needs, it is important to develop a well-diversified energy policy that relies on all current energy sources, including coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear, hydroelectric, geothermal, solar, and wind power.  Our energy policy must include a viable strategy for developing and employing natural resources.

I support the responsible exploration and development of natural resources on public lands, including a very small portion of ANWR, to oil and gas exploration.  It should be understood that of the 19 million acres in ANWR Congress has already designated more than eight million acres of ANWR as wilderness, which are permanently protected from development.  Of the remaining acreage, only 2,000 acres - an area one-third the size of the Salt Lake International Airport - are being considered for oil exploration.

I had the opportunity to visit ANWR, and saw first-hand the area considered for exploration under current proposals.  I was struck by the extent to which new technology has reduced the impact of oil exploration on the land.  Moreover, our nation has some of the most stringent environmental regulations in the world governing the development and extraction of natural resources.

One of our nation's greatest challenges is to become energy independent.  You are correct that our domestic oil shale and tar sands reserves are not being developed at the rate they should.  I have worked throughout my Senate career to facilitate development of these resources, but we keep running into difficult roadblocks.

There is more recoverable oil from shale in Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming than in all of Saudi Arabia.  Development of these resources would be a logical step to help extricate ourselves from the energy crisis.  To that end, I worked with Senator Pete Domenici and the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources to insert a provision in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 requiring the Department of the Interior to promulgate commercial leasing regulations for oil shale.  The Congress adopted this measure with significant bipartisan support.  We include a statutory timeline by which the secretary of the interior had to complete final regulations.  Because nearly all of Utah's oil shale is located on public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management in three Utah counties, the federal government is an indispensible partner in this effort.

Congress included a rider in last year's omnibus appropriations bill that prohibited the Department of the Interior from using any federal funds to issue final regulations for oil shale.  I strongly opposed this moratorium, and have tried unsuccessfully to repeal it.  I joined Senator Allard in an amendment to repeal the moratorium in a Senate Committee on Appropriations markup of a supplemental funding bill held on May 14, 2008.  Unfortunately, the amendment was defeated by one vote.  Understandably, industry is unwilling to make long-term investments until they finally see the government's rules of the game.  This creates unnecessary delay and high opportunity costs.

I will continue to work to resolve this issue and find other opportunities to repeal the moratorium.  Without the ability to develop our domestic resources, it is difficult to even begin the steps toward energy independence.  Thank you again, for writing.

Sincerely,

Robert F. Bennett

United States Senator

RFB:prw

Nothing is being done

There have been many articles in the news regarding the supposed efforts being made by Congress.  I'm sorry to report Congress has now gone on their Summer Recess (the entire month of August) with a bunch of proposals but nothing done on the matter of Energy or anything else for that matter.  Click here for such an article.  Now we have another proposal to throw additional money our Federal Government does not have from Senator Obama who is the likely Democratic nominee for the 2008 Presidential bid.

The Associated Press is reporting Senator Obama wants to do another stimulous rebate similar to the one passed last February and implemented in May through July.  Obama's proposal would give out rebate checks in the amount of $1,000.  When Obama made this proposal during a campaign stop he suggested this program would be here to help lessen the impact of the high energy costs on the average American budget.  However, Obama did state Americans can use the money for what ever they want.  However, the previous stimulus payment program didn't work according to this article from the Associated Press.  Now Obama wants to throw additioanl money without fixing the true cause of high energy costs.

This new proposal from Senator Obama will not work.  It is only a band-aid and doesn't stop the bleeding from the open wound.  Please, Please, Please write to your elected officials and ask them to do something now or face the prospect of being out of a job.  The first post has a sample letter you can send.

Write to your elected officials

A few weeks ago I made my first posting to this blog which included an example of what one could send to their elected officials. I'm sorry to report I did not write to my elected officials until just a few minutes ago. It isn't that I don't care about this topic but simply did not write until just now. The ironic thing is it didn't take much time at all to drop a line to my elected officials. It took me just three minutes per official to search out their contact information using the links provided in the pervious post, copy the letter I posted in the previous post, make the necessary adjustments depending on who I was writing to, and hit the send button. I will post their respective responces once I recieve them. This may take sometime. In the mean time, I will post information about what is happening with Big Oil (the big oil companies will be releasing their quarterly earnings in the next few weeks) and what others are doing to move away from traditional sources of energy.

Alternative Energy

With the high cost of oil and the fuels obtain from refining oil there has been much discussed about alternative energy sources. Years ago my father purchased the pickup truck his father drove prior to his death. My grandfather had converted his pickup to run on propane with the idea that he could also run it on regular gas if the need arose. Although he never did get it to work on regular gas, the truck could go quite a way before needing a fill up thanks to a 100 gallon propane tank installed in the bed of the truck. My father once told me the oil that came out of the truck when he changed it appeared to be just as clean as it was when he put it in three months previous.

The technology for alternative sources of energy is there. We simply need to implement this technology on a much broader scale. I personally see a time in which every building will have solar panels installed. Imagine how cheap our electricity would be if this were done? CNN reported on a story about a company in Colorado that installs solar panels. This is an excellent example of what can be done to help reduce the costs of energy.

I would love to see the day when the majority of buildings in a city have solar panels installed. Just imagine how cheap electricity would be if everyone had a solar panel installed! Many cities, states, and even utility companies offer incentives to install solar panels. Logan, UT is an example of this had has recently extended the rebate offer. Click here or here for details.

At this time electric cars are not a practical solution for long distance travel. The reason why this is the case is for two reasons. The first is the distance electric cars can go on a single charge. At best this distance is about 200 to 250 miles. The second reason is the length of time it takes to charge an all electric car. At this time, it takes just as long to charge an electric car as it does to drive the maximum distance on a single charge. This is why we have hybrid cars on the market. However, hybrid vehicles are very expensive to purchase right now for most people and even then, some hybrids still get the same gas mileage as a very fuel efficient car using a regular internal combustion engine.

There is the option of converting a car to utilize a different fuel source in much the way my grandfather did with his truck. However, many of these conversion options take a lot of cash up front to manage. There is also the matter of finding a fuel station close by that carries the fuel your vehicle requires. Natural Gas stations are not easy to come by at this time. You might have better luck with Propane. Do the research before you jump so you are aware of what you are getting into.

There are many things that one can do right now to help conserve fuel. The following are just a few items that can be put into practice now.

1 - Tune up your car. For less than $100 (check with your local mechanics shop for actual prices) you can tune up your car and improve your fuel efficiency.

2 - Replace the air filter. A dirty clogged air filter is starving your engine of the oxygen it needs to mix into the fuel to burn properly.

3 - Check your tire pressure. If your tires are not properly inflated your car will work harder and in turn burn more fuel. Over inflated tires are also a danger. Not only will the tire ware out faster but will not have enough grip and the vehicle will be harder to control.

4 - Slow down! Yes, most law enforcement agencies will allow for five to 10 miles per hour over the limit but you use more fuel the faster you go. In the past month I have tried to travel at the speed limit and have noticed my fuel efficiency increase about 3 miles per gallon. Sure that isn't a lot but over time it will add up!

Enough is Enough

As you are aware, the United States is experiencing an Energy crisis. How severe this energy crises remains to be seen. I was very young at the time of the last energy crisis and do not remember going to a gas station only to find the pumps to be dry. This blog is dedicated to the efforts each and every citizen of the United States can make to compel our elected officials to make better efforts to solve this energy crisis.

Each day the news is filled with reports on how high oil prices are going and how fuel prices are hitting record levels. Each quarter for the past 18 months, it has been reported the big oil companies are making record profits. The leadership of the big oil companies have been brought before Congress at least once a year for the past five years to give testimony as to why oil prices are so high and why their companies are making record profits while Americans stretch their budget to pay for their transportation costs. Each time, Congress has done little after they put on this show for the American public.

What can the average American Citizen do to help change the situation? We can do much. We can write to our representatives and tell them how we feel and let them know what we wish them as our elected officials to do. The following is a sample of what a letter to your elected official may contain.

Dear (Title and Last Name),

As a constituent who helped elect you to office, I am not happy with your job performance. I feel it is necessary to remind you great things can be done when people work together to make changes for the good of the country and put aside political differences.

As you will recall, there was great argument over how officials would be elected to the Congress of the United States of America. Some states wanted to have a certain amount of representation per state and others wanted representation based on population. After much debate, a proposal was made to have the Senate with two elected officials from each state and the House of Representatives would have officials from each state based on population.

(Title and Last Name), it is time once again for a compromise. This is especially true on the energy and economic fronts. Please work with your fellow elected officials and come to an agreement that both sides of the isle will pass into law. To help you in this matter, I have the following suggestions to make.

1. Finish the investigation on the high oil prices as quickly as possible.
2. Regulate how the oil futures are traded on the market or get rid of futures altogether.
3. Encourage the development of the shale oil in Western Colorado and Eastern Utah and any other domestic source available.
4. Encourage the development of alternative energy sources such as hydrogen, solar, wind, and nuclear power.

Once these energy projects are implemented, the United States will become less dependent on foreign energy sources and our economy will grow. If progress is not made on this front, other changes will become necessary. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,



(Your Name)


By now you should be asking yourself “who are my elected officials”? By clicking here a new website will open in a different window. You can also search on the websites for the House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate for your elected official’s “official website”. Most if not all of these “official websites” have a place to communicate electronically with your elected official.

You may also want to take the time to write to all of the elected officials that represent you in your State Goverment.

Thank you for taking the time to express your concerns to your elected officials. Each of these officials reapplies for their job every two, four, or six years. I am not aware of any other job which requires such a process. We, as a people, have the ability to replace our elected officials with someone different if we so choose to do so. Your vote does count.